Do diligent students perform better? Complex relations between student and course characteristics, study time, and academic performance in higher education

Abstract

Research has reported equivocal results regarding the relationship between study time investment and academic performance in higher education. In the setting of the active, assignment-based teaching approach at Hasselt University (Belgium), the present study aimed (a) to further clarify the role of study time in academic performance, while taking into account student characteristics (e.g. gender, prior domain knowledge), and (b) to examine the relation between a number of student and course characteristics and study time. Data included course-specific study time recordings across the entire term, grades for 14 courses, expert ratings of six course characteristics, and other data from the records of 168 freshmen in business economics. For most courses, study time predicted grades, even beyond student characteristics. However, there were differential results depending on the course considered, stressing the importance of examining relations at course level instead of globally across courses. As to study time, course characteristics were strong predictors.

Keywords:

• study time
• academic performance
• higher education
• self-regulated learning
• student characteristics
• learning environment

Acknowledgements

Many thanks to Jill Whittingham for her contribution to previous versions of the paper, made during her period as post-doctoral researcher at Hasselt University. The authors also wish to thank the anonymous referees for their helpful comments. Funding was provided by the Research Council of Hasselt University (project R-1257/BOF06N05).

Notes

1. In higher education in Flanders, Belgium, each year of a degree programme counts for 60 credits. It is determined by law that one credit should represent a study load of 25 to 30 hours (including time spent in class and on taking exams). At our university, the norm of 27 hours of study load per credit point is in use and is therefore applied in the current study. Unlike in other countries, courses may have different credit point loads. In most Flemish degree programmes, several courses are scheduled concurrently.

2. Supplying ST data was a condition for obtaining credits for one of the first-year courses (i.e. Research Methods and Psychology). Thus, although students decided not to take an exam, they still provided ST data. Students have the opportunity to withdraw from an exam up to the examination date. It is normal practice at our university that some students follow a course (and provide ST for it) and postpone the exam for different reasons.

3. More information regarding this application can be obtained from the following (Dutch) website: http://www.uhasselt.be/UH/Help-Studenten/Toepassingen/Studietijdmeting.html